Our view: Join the river sweep

You just wouldn’t believe what people will dump into the Ouachita River.

Well, maybe you would.

Each year, when volunteers take to the river for the annual Ouachita River Sweep, they pull out an average of eight tons of stuff. Yes, some of it is just trash like Styrofoam cups, but you really won’t believe what else these volunteers pull out of the river.

Local beautification officials are preparing for the ninth annual event on Saturday. The event is sponsored by the Army Corps of Engineers and the Keep Monroe, West Monroe and Ouachita Parish Beautiful organizations.

The event will take place from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday. Registration will begin at 8 a.m., however, pre-registration is encouraged to ensure that proper supplies are on hand. To pre-register, call Diane Cook at 381-7517, e-mail Diane.Cook@usace.army.mil or visit www.ouachitagreen.org.

The water sweep focuses on the Monroe/West Monroe metropolitan area. But the debris in the river can be swept downstream or into the river channel, creating obstacles for navigation.

"That debris that is in our waterways … breaks free from a storm. We need to do our very best to keep materials out of our river because it's something that connects us all," Ouachita Parish Code Enforcement Director Wayne Heckford said.

Participants can sign up during the morning of the event at any staging area in Ouachita Parish.

Staging sites include Lazarre Park Beach in West Monroe; Forsythe Park Boat Launch, Bayou DeSiard at ULM, Black Bayou Wildlife Refuge Education Center and Moon Lake all in Monroe; and the Sterlington recreation area and Cheniere Lake Area 3 Boat Launch in Calhoun.

This is a great community effort to improve our waterway. We look forward to seeing you out there on Saturday, helping restore our river to its natural beauty.

The editorials in this column represent the opinions of The News-Star’s editorial board, composed of General Manager and Executive Editor Kathy Spurlock, Business and Politics Editor Greg Hilburn and Senior Writer Barbara Leader.